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∞ The City of Edmonton: Hip Hop Artist Roland Pemberton/Cadence Weapon Named Edmonton's Next Poet Laureate

blownspeakers:

Roland Pemberton (professionally known as Cadence Weapon), poet, writer and hip hop artist, is the City of Edmonton’s next Poet Laureate. Pemberton will assume the role on July 1, 2009.

“I’m honoured that the City of Edmonton has considered me to be their Poet Laureate, a worthy chronicler of events and a representative of the diversity and cultural breadth of Edmontonians,” says Pemberton, a lifelong Edmontonian.

Pemberton, who will be Edmonton’s third Poet Laureate, was nominated by local artist Trevor Anderson. “I suggest that Rollie’s work already represents our City to its citizens, and that he acts as one of our most exciting municipal ambassadors when he tours nationally and internationally. Roland Pemberton is a poet of the people, and I think that might be the most important qualification for the Poet Laureate to hold”, writes Anderson in his nomination letter.

“This guy will bring poetry to a whole new audience, and challenge the rest of us on our conventional perception of what it means to be a poet,” said Edmonton Mayor Stephen Mandel. “I sometimes hear that young people aren’t ‘into’ poetry – but Roland as a musician/hip hop artist, will show them they really are into the art form – they just didn’t know it. We want young Edmontonians to be involved in shaping our City. I know Roland Pemberton will be a great Edmonton ambassador to the rest of the world.”